Officer wasn't shot by another man; he shot himself

Tuesday

Apr 18, 2017 at 6:23 PM

NEW PHILADELPHHIA — Tuscarawas County Sheriff Orvis Campbell and Newcomerstown Police Chief Gary Holland said Tuesday they were disappointed to learn that an officer's report of being shot during a traffic stop was a lie.

"This is the biggest kick in the gut we could have here," Campbell said at an afternoon news confernce about the investigation into a Newcomerstown officer's claim related to an April 11 incident. "The outcome of the case is not as we have hoped."

The investigation revealed that Bryan J. Eubanks, 37, shot himself in a failed suicide attempt. His subsequent claim that he was shot by a tattooed man who was a passenger in a black Geo Tracker set set off a three-county search for a suspect involving some 100 law enforcement officers.

Holland fired Eubanks on Tuesday after the 14-year village officer admitted to making a false report.